Whether court should rely on school certificate of age even if prosecution has not examined a person has admitted child in school?

 The trial court has
neither acted upon the evidence of Bhaulal (PW-8) nor on the
school certificate on the ground that the person who has
admitted the prosecutrix in the school was not examined.
(12) In our considered view, the approach of the trial court
was not correct. In each and every case the prosecution cannot
be expected to examine the person who has admitted a student in
the school. The school registers are the authentic documents
being maintained in the official course, entitled to credence
of much weight unless proved otherwise. In our view,
considering the evidence of head master, Bhaulal (PW-8), and

the school certificate produced by him i.e. Ex.P/13-A, age of
the victim has to be taken as 12 years at the time of
occurrence.

REPORTABLE
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
CRIMINAL APPEAL No(s). 2229 OF 2011

STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH  Vs  PREETAM 

R. BANUMATHI, J.:
Citation: AIR 2018 SC 4212 : 2018 (4) JLJR 24 : 2018 (4) PLJR 62 : 2018 (11) Scale 120

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Whether it is necessary to examine witness to prove certified copy of school records?

 The impugned order shows the Labour Officer of the Corporation having relied upon and produced various documents from the school records of the Petitioner as well as of her siblings in Primary Kanya Shala No. 3 of Panvel Nagar Parishad. These documents include the applications made at the time of the admission to the school for Petitioner and her sisters, the School Leaving Certificates of the Petitioner and her sisters, the admission register given by the Head Mistress of the School, a general register of the pupils of the school from old register indicating the date of birth record of the Petitioner etc. These documents are private documents. They carry no presumption in law. Certified copies of these documents are not admissible in evidence. These documents have to be proved by direct evidence as all private documents are required to be proved. It may be mentioned that the date of birth shown in the application for admission to the school are what the parents of the students state. They are not accompanied by documentary evidence to substantiate such dates of birth as correct. The school record would continue to show, until contrary is shown or proved, the date stated by the parents. The record of the school do not show that these dates have been verified from authenticated public documents such as the birth certificate or the record of birth maintained by the Municipal Authorities. Therefore the copies of the documents of the school cannot be taken as authentic.

13. It is common knowledge that to secure admission in the school earlier than at the age which the law permits, an incorrect date of birth may be shown. Unless verified from public records such date may remain in the record of the school. This cannot be verified except by production of public records. They, therefore, cannot be authentic dates as would make those documents admissible as evidence with probative value in law.

Equivalent Citation : 2008 (5)MhLj 147

IN THE HIGH COURT OF BOMBAY

Civil Writ Petition No. 6962 of 2006

Decided On: 17.04.2008

 Smt. Vasudha Gorakhnath Mandvilkar Vs. The City and Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra Ltd.

Hon'ble Judges/Coram:
Ranjana Prakash Desai and R.S. Dalvi, JJ.

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When age of victim is not proved on the basis of school leaving certificate?

A School Leaving Certificate would be admissible in
certain cases to prove the date of birth of a person by virtue of the
provisions of section 35 of the Evidence Act.  A reading of section
35   of   the   Evidence   Act   indicates   that   to   render   a   document
admissible under it, three conditions must be satisfied, the first
being 'that the entry that is relied upon must be one in a public or
other official book register or record; the second being 'that it must
be an entry stating a fact in issue or relevant fact;'  and the third
being 'that it must have been made by a public servant in discharge
of his official duty or any other person in performance of a duty
specially enjoined by law.'  An entry relating to date of birth made
in   a   school   register   would   be   relevant   and   admissible   under

section 35 of the Evidence Act, but, it has been held, that such
entry would not have much evidentiary value to prove the age of
the person in the absence of material on which the age was recorded.
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
CRIMINAL APPEAL NO.956 OF 2010
Sandeep Janaji Konde V The State of Maharashtra

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   CORAM :   ABHAY M. THIPSAY, J.
DATED  :    4th AUGUST,  2015
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Citation; 2016 ALLMR(CRI)1433

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